If you’re heading to Nelson over school holidays, anytime of year is a good time to take time out to visit Founders Heritage Park.

A Nelson City Council venue the park contains a replica historic village, a fine example of Nelson’s history. The character buildings are surrounded by beautiful gardens.

Ride on the train offering a taste of the original Nelson to Glenhope line which was in operation until 1955 and which is operational usually every day in the school holidays.

Visit the exhibitions and displays including the bike display with a good range of bikes, many old and rare including the 1869 bone shaker, the 1875 Penny Farthing, the 1908 pace bike with its unique "granny gear" and the 1902 Pederson Dulux. 

Jump into the cockpit of the Bristol Freighter aeroplane and explore the body, a great opportunity for the kid’s imaginations to take them back to a former era.

For those lovers of fire engines take the kids to visit the replica of the Nelson Volunteer Fire Brigade Engine House build in 1867 and where you’ll find Dennis, the 1954 fire engine and also Little Flick, the Land Rover Fire Tender.

For the boat lovers you can explore the Port Museum Buildings where you can find out more about Nelson’s rich nautical history.

For the big bus and coach lovers the Newman’s Coach Display will give you the history of Newman’s Coaches who opened up transport routes across the top of the South Island and who were instrumental in the development of New Zealand’s tourism industry. The kids will love the vintage coaches, interactive exhibits and there’s even some early film footage.

For other machine lovers head to the Harvestland Display with machines for all types of activities showcasing Nelson’s agricultural heritage.

Mum and Dad might enjoy popping into the Hop & Beer Museum and all the family will enjoy a break relaxing in the Founders Café which also has a playground next door. Or perhaps bring along a picnic.

All in all there’s something for everyone at Founders Heritage Park.

Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand, though it seems at first to have been used for the North Island only. Many meanings have been given for the name but with Maori names the true meaning can often be found only in a mythological story or in historical fiction illustrating either how the name was given or something of the ideas which prompted it. Aotearoa is made up of either two or three words, Aotea and roa or Ao tea and roa. Aotea could be the name of one of the canoes of the great migration, the great magellan cloud near the bright star Canopus in summer, a bird or even food; ao is a cloud, dawn, daytime, or world; tea white or clear, perhaps bright, while roa means long or tall.

The most popular and authoritative meaning usually given is “long white cloud”, and there are two stories current to illustrate this. It seems the voyagers to New Zealand were guided during the day by a long white cloud and at night by a long bright cloud. The more usual one tells how, when Kupe was nearing land after his long voyage, the first sign of land was the peculiar cloud hanging over it. Kupe drew attention to it and said “Surely is a point of land”. His wife, Hine-te-aparangi, called out “He ao! He ao!” (a cloud! a cloud!) Later Kupe decided to call the land after his wife's greeting to it, and the cloud which welcomed them. The name Aotea was given both to the Great Barrier and to the North Island, but the latter became Aotearoa, presumably because of its length.

According to certain authorities, the other meanings are: big glaring light (Hochstetter); continuously clear light, or land of abiding day (Stowell); long white world (Wilson); long bright world, long daylight, long lingering day, or long bright land (Cowan); and long bright day (Tregear). A good case could probably be made out for the land of abiding day, or similar names. Maui, who is closely connected with New Zealand in mythology, once snared the sun and beat him to make him travel more slowly across the sky. Perhaps Maui achieved the same end when he sailed south to fish up New Zealand where there is longer day with long twilight, particularly in the south.

'AOTEAROA', from An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock, originally published in 1966.
Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
URL: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/1966/aotearoa (accessed 06 Jan 2021)

With domestic travel currently the only wise activity within Covid restrictions, our local tourism industry could really do with the support so Linku2 are featuring on a number of articles to help you pick what would suit you and your family to get out and enjoy our beautiful country!

100% Pure New Zealand have some great articles to give you great ideas and as well as their North Island Must Do Experiences (linked through our North Island pages) of course there is the South Island experiences including exploring the Marlborough Sounds, Mt Aspiring National Park as well as many other outstanding national parks and of course great cities like Queenstown and Dunedin. Check these out and enjoy every single one of them! NZ.com top South Island Activities ...